< PreviousSmurfit Czech boostsproductivity thanks to K3Syspro mobile solutionPackaging specialist Smurfit Kappa’s newCzech office is benefiting from Syspro offeringgreater levels of productivity when used to postreal-time transactions directly from the shop floor.Smurfit Czech had already experiencedbenefits from Syspro’s ERP solution and hadgained further advantage by streamlining its salesorder processing system from end-to-end. However, with the advent of real-time mobiletechnologies and dealing with increasing volumes of orders, Syspro, who worked with K3 on theoriginal batch transaction mobile solution implementation, identified a way of increasingproductivity levels further. The K3 Syspro mobile scanning solution makes light work of managing inventories, receiving purchase orders and picking orders. It also complements thepowerful inventory management features of SYSPRO and provides real time transaction processing to enable quick and accurate data entry from barcodelabels. Once scanned the information flows through to SYSPRO in real time, to update its central database.10 Food & Drink Internationalwww.fdiforum.netHolfeld win sustainable packaging award atRepak awardsHolfeld Plastics has scooped asustainable packaging design award at theRepak 2013/14 Awards. The scope of the award is broadcovering all aspects such as packagingintegrity but also includes eco-friendlysourcing of packaging materials, increasedusage of recyclates and changing to morerecyclable materials.Part of Holfeld’s presentation to meet theaward was based on their Diamattechnology - the introduction of processesthat ‘superclean’ recycled Polymer pellets.Holfeld design and produce meat trays and fresh produce punnets that are made from up to 90% ofrecycled material, are lighter and designed to minimise transport and handling requirements.This technology is being applied across a range of materials and designs and Holfeld work withtheir customers so that they understand the environmental as well as technical benefits of products. Starring role for Ishida’s newmultiheadIshida’s latest multiheadweigher range, the RV Series,has received an award forinnovation.The Oscar Macfrut Awardscelebrate process and productinnovation and are judged by a panelof experts and authorities in the agri-food sector. The Ishida RV range wasrewarded for its numerousadvancements to an already-established technology that enablethe weighers to achieve 15% fasterspeeds than previous models while still delivering the highest levels ofaccuracy of any multihead weigher with close-to-zero giveaway.Key features include an improved user interface with an ultra-fast touchscreen that ensures quicker and easier set up, while the CCW-RV can alsobe operated remotely via wireless access with tablets, androids and smartphones. Enhanced security features include fingerprint verification access.The IP67-rated hygienic design incorporates six degree sloping, self-draining feeder covers and a nine degree sloping, self-draining main body,which minimise bacteria traps and allow faster and easier cleaning toincrease uptime.New technology offers enhancedhot-fill performancePET packaging solutions specialistAPPE has further enhanced its range ofbottles for hot-fill food and beverageswith the introduction of a technologythat delivers improved filling, greaterdesign flexibility, lighter weight andsmoother walls.Launched after an eighteen monthdevelopment period, the new ActiveHinge for APPE’s Heat Set bottle rangefeatures a multiple ribs design that thecompany says produces bottles that are30% lighter than existing technologywhile delivering an enhancedperformance in two key areas.The ribs provide additional rigidity tothe container to counteract the pressure caused by the filling and coolingprocesses. Equally important, the ribs contract after cooling, absorbing thevacuum that remains inside the bottle and further controlling deformation.The ribs also help to increase topload strength.As well as lighter bottles, which reduces raw material usage, the panel-less design creates a more modern look with smoother, sleeker lines thatalso improve label application and appearance.Long-standingrelationship leads to moretray sealer orders for PAPackaging Automation are helping FlavourfreshSolfresh group, one of the leading salads producersin the UK, to increase both productivity and efficiencyin the packing of tomatoes and strawberries.Flavourfresh have purchased two high speed eclipseSL6 tray sealers – a high throughput machinecapable of sealing up to 100 packs per minute. For flexibility and long term value the eclipse SL6can be easily converted to a twin lane machine togive speeds of up to 200 packs per minute. To saveon critical downtime, tool changeovers on the eclipsetray sealers can be done manually in two minutes asa result of an inbuilt tool loading system.The ingenious top tool comprises singleimpression removable cartridges to enable continuedoperation during repairs and routine maintenance.Quick release cutting blades on these allow forreplacement in seconds and spare cartridges aresupplied to enable full capacity operation at all times.10-11:Layout 1 18/10/13 11:09 Page 1Food & Drink International 11www.fdiforum.netDon’t forgetyou can now readFood & Drink International Digital Editionsnow available on iPad & iPhonewww.fdiforum.netIdeal for those who spendtime away fromthe officeonthego!Chilled distributor improvesefficiency with StanleyStanleySecuritySolutions hascompleted theinstallation ofcomprehensivesecurity and Time& Attendancesystems for aleading chilledfood distributioncompany, helpingto improve theirefficiency.NFT is the market leader in chilled logistics, with a temperature controlleddistribution network comprising seven sites across the UK, employing 1700staff. To manage staff effectively and to maintain its excellent customer service,NFT uses Stanley’s NT500 access control system and has recentlyupgraded its T&A system at its Daventry site to Stanley’s Zeus. Zeusprovides automatic calculations of hours worked, breaks and overtime inreal time, with email reporting and full export to Excel, ensuring NFT’s HRsystem is always up to dateZeus is being used at NFT Daventry with four hand punched terminalslocated at the warehouse and administration department. Its flexibility issuch that it can readily cope with the seven hundred employees and eightdifferent languages being spoken on site. New Roto-Batchers speeds up andenhances tray presentationIshidaEurope hasintroduced asecond modelinto its weighbatcher range.The new Roto-Batchercombines theaccurateweighing offresh meat andpoultry withmanualmanipulation tooptimise their arrangement and presentation in trays, while its circular rotarybatching table, positioned directly below the weigher, also maximises thereturn on floor space.The Roto-Batcher has been developed for sticky meat and poultryproducts which cannot be easily moved by feeder vibration, or for whenmanual product feeding is not economically viable. Using eight operators,the system can deliver speeds of 55 trays per minute with an averagegiveaway of only 1%. Product is weighed automatically on Ishida’s provenScrew Feeder weigher. Ishida says that as well as fast speeds and minimal product giveaway, thenew system can reduce labour by up to 60% compared with an entirelymanual operation.To advertise your services on the newspages contact us on 01472 31030210-11:Layout 1 18/10/13 11:09 Page 212 Food & Drink Internationalwww.fdiforum.netPots with adifferenceRPC Bebo Polska has added two uniquedesigns to its range of standard containersfor food and non-food applications.The 115mm pots with matching lids offertwo distinctive patterned finishes, one withsweeping curved lines, the other a series ofsquares and triangles, which are differentfrom any other current container designsand therefore enable products to create on-shelf differentiation and distinctive brand identity.Importantly, because the diameter is the same as existing pots currently available,manufacturers can switch to the new designs without any adjustments required to their filling lines.The new containers are available in both PP and PET and can be transparent or produced in a range of colours. Lids can be labelled or offset printed forfurther personalisation.Typical applications include fresh salads, dips and desserts.Campbells launches vegetables al dente incombiblocMidiCampbells has expanded its Liebigrange with new products, under thesub-brand Cuisinés al dente, in the500g combiblocMidi carton pack fromSIG Combibloc.The aseptic filling into aseptic cartonpacks is made possible by a productpreparation system that uses the ohmicprocess. This is a gentle, continuousheating process used to sterilise theproducts. Compared to conventional thermal sterilisation techniques, the product is not heatedover a hot surface, but uniformly through the entire product volume by means of an electriccurrent. The product ingredients retain their natural flavour and a firmer consistency than in theconventional retort process. The ohmic process is suited in particular for processing chunkyproducts such as fruit, vegetables and meat, vegetable soups and purées.Once sterilised, the products are filled into aseptic carton packs in the SIG Combibloc fillingmachines. The carton packs are ultrasonically sealed above the fill level, preventing ingredientsgetting caught in the sealed seam.A new range with bark aswell as biteFresh from www.lefktro.co.uk comes an award-winning range of delicious new products that look asgood as they taste, under the Black Dog Delicatessenname.The striking contemporary packaging features Baileyand Blue, the two rescue dogs belonging to Lefktro’sMD James Tyler, who provided the inspiration for thebrand. Proceeds from every product sold will bedonated to The Labrador Rescue Trust.Hand-picked by Lefktro from some of their finestproducers across Italy and Greece, the range includesfive pasta choices, four risotto mix choices, five olivechoices, balsamic vinegar and two Great Taste Award-winning olive oils.James Tyler says, “We wanted to create a signaturebrand that people could trust. Black Dog combinesauthentic provenance at an affordable price. What’smore, given the fact that the British are such a nation ofdog lovers, I’m sure the rescue dog element will provepopular too.”Eco&Pack with Gauguin technologymakes its markThe new Eco&Pack container fromRPC Bebo France is proving popular fora wide range of dairy applications.Latest customers include Isigny SainteMère for its Delisse Fromage Blancrange and Granja Teisol SA for creamyoghurt, both of whom have expressedsatisfaction with the RPC Bebo Francesolution for their various productrequirements.Eco&Pack can be specified in avariety of sizes and manufactured in PS,PP or multilayer PP/EVOH/PP for anextended ambient shelf life. This meanspacks can be developed and tailored tomeet the precise needs of differentproducts which as well as dairy include baby, nutritional and pet foods.A choice of decoration options includes Gauguin high definition offsetprinting which creates excellent quality graphics to enable packs to bepersonalised in order to create individual brand identify and on-shelfdifferentiation. This technology has recently been adopted by Lactalis forhigh-impact decoration for its Bridelight brand.Two new meatylaunches fromScotty BrandScotty Brand is revitalising the meatcategory with the launch of ScottyBrand Bacon and Scotch Beef Burgers. Scotty Brand Bacon is slow maturedScottish back bacon, produced byScotland’s oldest-established curers.The new Scotty bacon is made withskinless and boneless sides of 100%specially selected pork and uses thetraditional Ayrshire style of curing in asecret brine recipe. There is no addedwater, meaning there’s no shrinkage oncooking. Scotty Brand’s new pepper burgers are made with Scotch Beef, mincedwith cracked black pepper and onion. The burgers are made by award-winning Ayrshire butcher We Hae Meat and contain exceptionally leanScotch beef.Michael Jarvis, marketing manager for Scotty Brand, says, “Scotty Brandhas an established reputation for delivering Scottish food that is good value,low in food miles and high on taste. The new launches are consistent withthe quality and expertise behind our fresh produce offerings. “12:Layout 1 18/10/13 11:42 Page 1Food & Drink International 13www.fdiforum.netIMPORT AND EXPORTAn obvious meeting of supply anddemand is always at play in theinternational trading network. However,with schemes to encourage branching outinto new territories, who is benefiting? What happens when you want to gofurther? Well, marketing to somewhere asremote as the Middle East can seem like ahard ask for some companies. With thelogistics involved and the initial cost thatit requires it can often seem like a longtrip to unfamiliar surroundings to dobusiness in. Help is at hand now, as cateringequipment suppliers who want to marketto the region can get a grant of £2,500 tohelp them participate in Gulfood.Information is available through CESA,the Catering Equipment SuppliersAssociation, which has been appointed byUK Trade & Investment as the CateringEquipment Group Organiser at the event,held in Dubai next February.Going even further, the US Departmentof Commerce has recently reportedconsumers in Hong Kong and China areeating and drinking their way through $2billion worth of Californian fine wines,health and organic foods and freshproduce annually. As growth in the Hong Kong marketcontinues, consumers in China are in themidst of a surge in demand for raw andmanufactured produce from the sunshinestate.Participating in the annual Food Expoin the USA Pavilion, leading Californianfood and beverage producers will belooking to increase market share withproducts that match the taste buds ofsophisticated diners in Hong Kong andChina.Jeff Williamson, Director, CaliforniaState Trade and Export Promotion says,“Hong Kong and China are two veryimportant markets for California and thegrowth has been phenomenal. With foodand beverage exports hitting $2.5 billion,far from waning, the appetite forCalifornian produce by consumers isincreasing – especially in China wheregrowth is surging faster than ever before.”This was achieved by Californiansshowcasing quality-assured food andbeverage products and conducting foodExtending your reach to the Middle Easthas become easier lately, with fundingavailable to exhibit at Gulfood in Dubainext year available.14 Trade windsThe way food and drink import and export trends change at speed seems to suggest that you get out whatyou put in. What efforts are being made to help readers explore new territories?13-14:Layout 1 18/10/13 11:11 Page 114 Food & Drink Internationalwww.fdiforum.netIMPORT AND EXPORTand wine tasting sessions at trade showslike Food Expo. Olive oil, pistachios, spicywines, and other uncooked andmanufactured food items have beenamong the products available forsampling, seeing direct, tangible results. No more sneering at Britishfodder?What if the problem is not about reachhowever, but perception? AccountantsBaker Tilly have welcomed the launch ofthe UK Government’s action plan forfood and drink exports recently and itseems something needed to be done aboutthe negative connotations that Britishfood has abroad. Often the butt of jokes,many now argue it has a proud, artisanalheritage of food. A thousand British food and drinkfirms stand to benefit from the new exportplan, launched by UKTI and DEFRA,which aims to deliver a £500 millionboost to the UK economy. The Action Plan aims to deliver in sixkey areas, including promoting UK foodand drink internationally, helping UKfirms win business internationally throughtargeted campaigns, unlocking marketbarriers and simplifying the paperworkand encouraging more companies,particularly SMEs, to explore exporting .It also promotes inward investment andenhancing dialogue between Governmentand industry. Andy Capes, Head of Baker Tilly’sNorthern Food and Drink Group, says,“Strong, effective collaboration betweenthe industry and Government is vital tosecuring greater export growth for theUK’s agri-food and drink sector. “The days of sneering at British cuisineare in the past. There is a growing respectin the international market for the varietyand quality of British food and drink, andthis is being reflected in increased sales inoverseas markets. “There are a lot of positives in thisplan. Particularly welcome is a Defraproposal to secure Protected Food Namestatus for more UK products. This willallow for more British products to join thelikes of Stilton cheese, Welsh lamb andScottish farmed salmon and be given legalprotection against imitation throughoutthe EU. This will also open newopportunities for marketing in otherinternational markets. Many food anddrink businesses can also learn from theglobal appeal of Scotch whisky, and theefforts made by that industry to protectitself from unfair competition.” PHOTO: SHUTTERSTOCK.COM/ANDREAS KOEBERLBritish food exports look set to grow aswe throw off the reputation for bland andboring food, instead highlighting thecountry’s best products.China and Hong Kong are enjoying the fruits ofCalifornian labour as wine and organic food inparticular are performing well there.13-14:Layout 1 18/10/13 11:11 Page 2Food & Drink International 15www.fdiforum.netSUPPLY CHAIN SPOTLIGHTSupply chains have become morefragmented in recent years. There hasbeen consolidation across territories, suchas JF Hillebrand Benelux acquiringMeerendonk Advanced Logistics’ Dutchand Belgian activities. In addition, anumber of companies are now making useof networks that can spread across a hugearea, such as that provided by Palletline.The Palletline Europe service offers afull import and export service to 29countries, with daily departures. Withcustomer demand and product availabilitysubject to quick and unpredictablefluctuations, Palletline assists with leadtimes that can be as little as two days, andthey also offer quarter and half palletpricing designed for smaller food anddrink consignments. Palletline Europepartner with companies such as Europa,CS Ellis, DSV and ImmediateTransportation.There are obvious advantages with thisapproach. In the past everything wascarried out in-house but these daysoutsourcing and collaboration havebecome much more common, allowing forhuge savings to be made in maintainingand managing large scale warehouses andan extensive fleet of vehicles. Thisapproach also has obvious environmentalbenefits, as vehicles are only used whenthey’re required and can save space bytransporting goods from numerouscompanies at once.However, this brings with it issues oftraceability and it’s vital that, whenmaking use of networks and pooledresources, everyone involved canaccurately locate and identify the specificproducts at every step of the way.The changes in the industry recentlycame under the spotlight at the recentSCALA Annual Debate which broughttogether major names from across thesector to predict the future shape of theindustry. Supported by Toyota MaterialHandling, the aim was to identify whatwill be the most significant developmentsStrengthening the chainAs the supply chain becomes more complex, companies at every link need to consider theeffectiveness of their policies17 Storage specialists need to ensure that safety and hygiene aren’tcompromised, warehouse operators have a requirement that products areeasy to retrieve and move and distribution specialists must guarantee thatsecurity and traceability are a top priority at every step of the way15-20:Layout 1 18/10/13 11:29 Page 1Mercedes-Benz Used 1Approved Used Vans & ServicesSometimes second handcan be first choice.www.mercedes-benz.co.uk/vansThoroughly checked,both inside and outside.15-20:Layout 1 18/10/13 11:29 Page 2Food & Drink International 17www.fdiforum.netSUPPLY CHAIN SPOTLIGHTin supply chain and logistics in the nextdecade – with the value of collaborationvery much in mind.The belief that manufacturers andretailers will look intensely at producingspeedier supply chains to drive costs outwas held by guest speaker Dave Howarth,Logistics Director at General Mills. Hetouched on the fixation of values and thechallenge suppliers will face in meetingthe needs of consumers who, in his words,“not only valued value, but also valuedvalues”. The horsemeat scandal hasclearly lead to some loss of consumertrust, and Dave Howarth emphasised thatthere will continue to be significantchange.Keith Newton of SCALA reiterated thespeed of change in the industry, puttingforward the notion that UK industryprofessionals have a solid knowledge baseand expertise valued on a global scale, andthat young logistics professionalsexperienced in integrated supply chainsare facing international careers. Certainlysoft skills were considered the future ofthe industry for Jane Burkitt, SeniorSupply Chain Director at Pepsico, whosaid that she doubted extensive investmentin technology is the way forward, and thatPotter Logistics beenawarded their re-accreditation of the BRCGlobal Standard for thestorage and distribution ofambient foods at itsdistribution centre18 The horsemeat scandal has clearlylead to some loss of consumertrust, and Dave Howarthemphasised that there willcontinue to be significant change.Palmer and Harvey hasspecified its first fridge-bodiedMercedes-Benz 18-tonners withthe automated transmissionsthat have already contributed toa valuable fuel cost saving onits dry freight fleetTHE WORLDWIDE IMPACT TRAFFIC DOOR AND STRIP CURTAIN COMPANYwww.strip-door.netManufacturers Since 1952Freephone08000 43 40 2018 Models of Impact Traffic Doors and Strip Curtain Doors(Retail Outlets, Warehousing, Coldrooms, Bakeries, Food Preparation Facilities, Poultry Farms, Restaurants, Factories, Professional Kitchens)15-20:Layout 1 18/10/13 11:29 Page 318 Food & Drink Internationalwww.fdiforum.netSUPPLY CHAIN SPOTLIGHTCall 0161 483 1232 to speak to our teamfood and drink innovationCampden BRIMADE IN THE UKHygienic surfaces for food & drink environmentsFoodsafeImprovedhygieneSeamlesssurfaceCampden BRIapprovedit would be more beneficial to invest in people rather thantechnology. However there are changes in the sector that will doubtless bedriven by technology. Indeed, Trever Ashworth, Head of Logisticat Waitrose, said that he thought the future of the industry lieswith 3D printing, a major innovation that could play afundamental part in increasing flexibility in services offeredthroughout the supply chain. It’ll certainly be fascinating to seehow this potentially game-changing technology has an impact overthe next few years.The SCALA debate concentrated minds on the current state ofthe industry and illustrated how companies at every stage arebenefitting from greater collaboration, whether that’s making useof new technology or creating formal alliances, or simply swappingideas. There are plenty of the latter abounding in some of thesector’s most innovative companies.One of the most effective methods of ensuring absolute productintegrity in recent times has been warehouse and trafficmanagement software, such as that provided by Clydebuilt. TheirLocateIT WMS is suited to single or multi-site operation andparticularly useful for outsourced logistics providers anddistributors. LocateIT WMS can be integrated comfortably withother warehouse systems or those of customers when it comes tophysically managing food items, including BBE date, Lot/Batchnumber control and FIFO management. The new release ofLocateIT focuses on simplifying the Goods In process, as completeaccuracy at this stage also means that all subsequent warehousefunctions follow easily, and are more manageable and traceable.Changes to the kinds of vehicles now being used is also improvingthe efficiency of the supply chain substantially. Mercedes-Benz areamong those who offer high quality vehicles and UK wholesalersPalmer and Harvey has specified its first fridge-bodied Mercedes-Benz 18-tonners with the automated transmissions that have alreadycontributed to a valuable fuel cost saving on its dry freight fleet. Anadditional sixty Axor 1824s are being supplied to increase theiroverall chilled and frozen capability, fitted with multi-temperatureinsulated bodies and fridges by Gray & Adams, Paneltex andSolomon.Last year Pentagon Commercials supplied Palmer and Harvey with85 Axor 1824s with dry freight box bodies – its first to be fitted withAutotrans gearboxes as well as air management kits. These haveproven 3% more fuel-efficient than the Axor 1824s delivered by thesame dealer a year earlier.Rhys Thomas, National Transport Manager at Palmer andHarvey, says, “Mercedes-Benz is now our primary truck supplier, notonly for the reliability, fuel-efficiency and general ‘fitness forpurpose’ of its vehicles, but also for the quality of its back-up. Thesupport we receive from the manufacturer and its dealer is first class.“Our procurement strategy is based on a five-year life cycle. Thisallows us to make a small extra investment in Mercedes-Benz trucksat the front end, knowing that by the end of the term they will havebeen demonstrably more economical and cost-effective to operatethan other makes of vehicle. The drivers seem to like the two-pedalset-up. As well as saving fuel, this improves safety by leaving themBibby Distribution have rolled out a hostof new environmental initiatives,including the introduction of twentyaerodynamic teardrop trailers15-20:Layout 1 18/10/13 11:29 Page 4free to concentrate fully on what’s going on around themwithout having to worry about which gear they’re in, and cutsdowntime and maintenance costs by preventing abuse of thedriveline.”Other companies are making great strides to ensure energyefficiency in their distribution activities. Bibby Distribution,for example, have rolled out a host of new environmentalinitiatives, including the introduction of twenty aerodynamicteardrop trailers and training in Safe and Fuel EfficientDriving techniques for more than four hundred drivers.Across their fleet, 90% of vehicles now feature automatictransmission which optimise fuel-efficient running, plus it isoperating in excess of 750 high-cube,double-deck trailers, to maximise thevolume of freight that can be transported ina single truckload. This all means that thecompany has reduced its total dieselconsumption by 2%. The drop in fuel usageis combined with a reduction in fleet size of4.8% over twelve months – made possibleby more efficient scheduling and routing ofvehicles.Maintenance and cleaning costs areobviously a major factor throughout thesupply chain – not just for the vehicles butalso back at the warehouse. Companiessuch as Resin Surfaces can help in thisregard with their high quality flooringsolutions which can deal with all theFood & Drink International 19www.fdiforum.netSUPPLY CHAIN SPOTLIGHTDesigned to improveefficiencies within allwarehouse environments;LocateIT WMS helpsmanufacturing companiesremain competitive intoday’s demandingmarkets.www.clydebuiltsolutions.comLooking to control costsand add value to yourbottom line?We have the solution.The Palletline Europe service offers a fullimport and export service to 29 countries,with daily departures20 Maintenance and cleaning costs areobviously a major factor throughout thesupply chain – not just for the vehicles butalso back at the warehouse15-20:Layout 1 18/10/13 11:29 Page 5Next >